{"product_id":"dead-weight-a-memoir-in-essays-paperback","title":"Dead Weight: A Memoir in Essays - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eRandall Horton\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eDead Weight\u003c\/i\u003e chronicles the improbable turnaround of a drug smuggler who, after being sentenced to eight years in state prison, returned to society to earn a PhD in creative writing and become the only tenured professor in the United States with seven felony convictions. Horton's visceral essays highlight the difficulties of trying to change one's life for the better, how the weight of felony convictions never dissipates. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e The memoir begins with a conversation between Horton and Ralph Ellison's \u003ci\u003eInvisible Man\u003c\/i\u003e statue in New York City. Their imagined dialogue examines the psychological impact of racism on Black men and boys, including Horton's separation from his mother, immediately after his birth, in a segregated Alabama hospital. From his current life as a professor and prison reformer, Horton looks back on his experiences as a drug smuggler and trafficker during the 1980s-1990s as well as the many obstacles he faced after his release. He also examines the lasting impact of his drug activity on those around him, reflecting on the allure of economic freedom and the mental escapism that cocaine provided, an allure so strong that both sellers and users were willing to risk prison. Horton shares historical context and vivid details about people caught in the war on drugs who became unsuspecting protagonists in somebody else's melodrama. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Lyrical and gripping, \u003ci\u003eDead Weight\u003c\/i\u003e reveals the lifelong effects of one man's incarceration on his psyche, his memories, and his daily experience of American society. \u003cbr\u003e\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eRANDALL HORTON \u003c\/b\u003eis the author of a previous memoir and several books of poetry, including \u003ci\u003ePitch Dark Anarchy: Poems\u003c\/i\u003e (TriQuarterly Books, 2013) and \u003ci\u003eThe Lingua Franca of Ninth Street\u003c\/i\u003e. In 2019 he served as poet-in-residence for the Civil Rights Corps in Washington, DC, which is a nonprofit organization dedicated to challenging systemic injustice in the American legal system. The recipient of numerous awards, including the Gwendolyn Brooks Poetry Award, the Bea González Poetry, a National Endowment of the Arts Fellowship in Poetry, and a Right to Return Fellowship from the Soze Foundation, he currently sits on the Advisory Board of PEN America's PEN Prison Writing Program. He is a professor of English at the University of New Haven.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 144\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.5 x 8.9 x 6 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e February 15, 2022\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44835543449702,"sku":"9780810144637","price":30.87,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0599\/7255\/0758\/files\/RE41VXNPWmx0T0RzMHdUMkxlUFZIZz09.webp?v=1772304817","url":"https:\/\/infinitylightwa.com\/products\/dead-weight-a-memoir-in-essays-paperback","provider":"Infinity Light","version":"1.0","type":"link"}